Friday, February 04, 2005

A couple years ago a somewhat estranged friend of mine invented the concept of "name tension" (it was later fleshed out with Heather's assistance). It can be explained simply as the inherent distrust and disgust that some people have for people that share their first name.

For example: I've really only met maybe 20 different Andys, and a few became good friends, but I've had name tension with the great majority. One high school peer stands out in particular. From the moment I met him, he drove me nuts. I couldn't stand him (even worse, he ran in similar circles). After escaping high school and looking back on all those strained Spanish classes, I couldn't find a single specific cause for all the tension besides the fact that we shared the same name. There wasn't enough room in the language lab for two Andys, let alone two Andreses.

As we began to share this concept with other people, we began to hear, over and over, that other people had experienced the same thing. Heather has had issues with many a Heather, and the inventor of it all hates all Steves.

All of this makes me wonder: Would I have double the name tension with Andrew Andrew?